1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to contact center resource management. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention relate to a system and method for delivering a contact to a preferred agent, where that preferred agent may not be initially available and the contact may be placed in a queue for a tolerable set wait period.
2. Description of the Related Art
To achieve customer satisfaction, a contact center attempts to provide the appropriate agent to a contact (a.k.a. customer) so the agent may best assist the contact with his or her specific needs. That is, a contact center will commonly assign a particular agent to a contact based on a set of parameters such as attributes from a work assignment engine, and/or particular skills of the agent, and/or any other means. The agent, who has been matched to the contact based upon these parameters, is then commonly referred to as the “preferred” agent for that particular contact at that particular time.
This matching of a preferred agent with a contact is often achieved by “delivering” the contact to the agent after the agent has been matched. For example, certain agents with certain work assignments or skill sets that match the contact when that contact makes a request for assistance from an agent are routed to the appropriate contact by way of, for example, an assignment engine. Existing contact center systems and methods are capable of providing preferred agents to a perspective contact based upon a match of the agent. However, if a preferred agent is not available for a particular contact making a request, the contact is almost immediately or inevitably routed to a non-preferred agent to avoid a perceived unacceptable idle or wait time. As a result, the contact is routed to an agent that may not be the best match for that contact at that particular time with that contact's particular issue. Customer satisfaction, although intended to be met or exceeded by avoiding any wait time, may actually be compromised or not rise to the level of satisfaction so desired or required by the contact center.
Similarly, if a preferred agent has completed his or her job with a contact and the next contact is not waiting to be picked up by the preferred or matched agent, the agent is commonly, almost immediately assigned to a non-preferred contact and another opportunity for customer satisfaction escapes the contact center.
Known systems for matching contact with preferred agents and vice versa include Avaya's CC Elite 6.0. This system includes the concept of preferred agents based on skill level, but there is no feature in this system that allows for a set wait period for a preferred agent even if one will be available shortly. Similarly, there is no way for an agent who has become available, and may be a candidate as a preferred agent for a particular contact, to wait for preferred work.
Historically, overflow groups have set up separate queues for preferred and non-preferred agents with vectors waiting a fixed amount of time before queuing to the non-preferred queue. There is no known ability, however, for a contact to wait for a better (preferred) agent when a non-preferred agent is available. Similarly, there is no known way for an available agent to wait for a better (preferred) contact when a non-preferred contact is waiting—the theory being the less the expected wait time, the better, no matter what the end result.
Thus, there is a need for a system and method that provides a means to allow a contact, albeit after waiting some amount of time or period, to be delivered to a preferred agent before that contact is routed to a non-preferred agent or before an agent, who has become available, is routed to a non-preferred contact.